Red Roof Maples

[Russell Lampron]

Sitting here drinking a boiling soda as I write this. I had a good weekend for getting maple things done. The snow removal was only minor compared to what it has been. I got my releaser set up and got 100 of the 200 taps that I have on vacuum tapped. Ran out of battery and daylight at the same time. If I had a fresh battery I might have tried some of that night tapping like Matt and TheROn.

Went to Bascoms this morning to sell some commercial syrup. He is paying $1.90 lb right now. He said that he has about 3/4 of his taps in and that it has been too cold.

Things have started here in Loudon. Hopefully we get the BIGSAP and have a good season for a change. I have had to deal with a lot of problems to get this far.

Russ

[325abn]

Hey Russ
I put out 100 taps on a gravity line. Sap was running like mad.

[royalmaple]

Russ-

You gotta waaaaaannnt it.

All I want now is sleep. Glad you got some drilling practice. Now get some sap flowing into those tanks. Banner year coming your way. Get ready. Might have to burn two cords of wood this year.

[Russell Lampron]

I am thinking about asking a local producer with too many taps if he wants to sell me some sap. My father has a cord of small wood that I could use if I burn up the 2 cords that I have.

Besides the loyal customers that I have I have a couple of prospects for larger volume sales.

I wasn't able to start tapping until 4:30 but most of the trees were at least wet and some were running pretty good while the sun was still out.

BIGSAP MARCH is coming! It is going to be a banner year.

Russ

[3% Solution]

Hi Russ,
Talked with a guy in Claremont today who was tapping.
He said nothing that he had done was running.
He said he had tapped yesterday too.
Still a bit too cold over here yet.
The sun getting higher and it is warm, which is a good sign of things to come.
National Weather Service says about 40 around here tomorrow, however, back into the deep freeze again (-6 Thursday night into Friday morning).
Next Sunday around 35 as it stands now.
We know that can change.
With the snow we have it has to be a good year!!
Was going to tap today but decided not to, next Sunday for sure, don't want to get caught short!
Stay safe watch your icy footing!!!

Dave

[Russell Lampron]

Hi Dave,

I usually try to get my taps that are on vacuum in first. I have to work until noon next Saturday and still have 450 taps to put in. I'm not expecting much sap this week anyway.

Fell a little short of where I wanted to be but did it the way that I wanted to do it. It is looking like next week is when it is going to start and I should be able to get all of my taps in next weekend so that I will be ready for the BIGSAP.

Russ

[Russell Lampron]

Finished tapping the tubing that I have on vacuum, about 200 taps, this afternoon. Had to dig some of the mainlines out of the snow and had to bend down to tap some trees. The sap was trying to run but it was too cold.

Going to try to get the tubing in my parents woods tapped tomorrow but have to get through with the tractor first. There is more than 4' of snow in the woods and even though we have been keeping the sap roads open all winter it is just getting to be too deep.

Russ

[Parker]

Definatly tough sledding,,but I think it will be worth it,,,are you finding a lot of branches on you lines?? Over this way we must have had a big wind that I missed??? I had most all the lines walked-cleaned off around new years,,,,,Good luck!!!!!!

[Russell Lampron]

Yes I have found a lot of branches. The heavy snow is breaking them out of the trees.

Everybody is having a tough time in the woods this year. If I didn't have snow shoes I wouldn't have gotten anything done yesterday. I hope I can get everything tapped before the BIGSAP comes. I can't afford to miss any. I only have one small tin log cabin left from last year.

Russ

[3% Solution]

Good morning Russ,
Not quite as much snow over here, but there is enough!!!
I travel to Concord two days a week and there is a lot more snow between Newbury / Bradford and Concord area.
The snow on the crust is maybe half way to the knees (I'm 6').
Haven't found any branches on the lines this year and they are located at the height of the land. I was suprised with the wind we've had.
We're going to tap today, all 130 of um!!!
Friend of mine is coming over tomorrow to help me set up the EEU.
Got the sink and the filter / canner set up yesterday.
Have you ever had one of those days ............ I did yesterday, at noon I was ready to find a case of boiling sodas and say to heck with it!!!!
But I didn't, kept plugging.
Stay safe, keep upright on the ice!!

Dave

[Sugarmaker]

Dave,
Let me know on the EEU. Cant wait to hear the results! Hope you get a run tommorrow.
Regards,
Chris

[Russell Lampron]

Dave I've had plenty of those days too. The work usually wins out and by the time I sit down to enjoy a cold boiling soda I end up falling asleep 1/2 way through it.

I am sick of moving snow. Every weekend it seems like I have to devote 1/2 a day to that before I can do my maple stuff.

Saturday the snow was getting sticky by the time I got home from work so I decided to get some trees tapped. Plowed the snow yesterday morning which worked out good because it got cold enough over night to dry it out.

Only got stuck twice going through my fathers woods with his tractor. It is a good thing it is a High Clearance tractor. After that I put the snow shoes on and got about 100 taps in. I have got about 100 more down there to finish up.

Russ

[Giffpc]

i tappd the trees last weekend and collected about 20 gallons. i boiled it down and finished on the stove. when the temp was right, i took if off and sent it to through the filter. i ended up with a gallon of light amber. is it possible the sugar content is that high that i can get 20 to one.

this is the first year for me trying this out, so i have a lot of questions. thanks

[gearpump]

Russ you going to be buying sap from the Red Baron down the road?! Man don't cross to the dark side.....

Marty

[Russell Lampron]

Marty,

No, I'm not going to buy sap from the Red Baron. The Mudget Hill Mumbling Maplers have got Harry O's trees as well as their own. At last count they had 1300 taps of their own and only have a 2.5x8 evaporator. My father tells me that they bought a Steam Away but they don't have an RO.

Giffpc,

You can't go by temperature alone as water boils at different temps depending on the barometric pressure. You need to get a hydrometer to test it with. Your sap would have to be at 4.3% sugar content to make 1 gallon with 20 gallons of sap. That is possible though.

I have about 40 gallons of sap in my tank on vacuum. It tested at 3% when I checked it tonight. Not bad considering that 1/2 of the trees are red maples.

Russ

[3% Solution]

Hi Russ,
Got a bunch of stuff done today, finished tapping, fitted the EEU,
Almost ready, by Wednesday night won't anything left but the boiling itself, I hope.
I figure I'll boil Friday or Saturday.

Giffpc; I have a tree that is real sweet like that, it is a front lawn and with the dogs around you have to watch where you walk.
Many, many land mines!!!
Keeps the tree fertilized!!!!

Dave

[Russell Lampron]

Had the best run of the year so far yesterday. I have about 200 gallons of sap plus what runs today to boil tonight. Spent the last 2 nights working in the sugar house. Got the evaporator all plumbed back up and ready to go. Dug a 20 foot trench to unbury the pipe that I use to drain sap into my bulk tank. Put the membrane back into the RO machine and hooked up the plumbing to that. My wife is going to gather the sap today so we don't have an overflow down in the woods. Going to pick up some boiling sodas on my way home from work tonight and sweeten the pans.

Russ

[royalmaple]

Russ-

Time to make some quality product.

I think today is going to be good. Sun's out now. Gotta get stuff ready today.

[Russell Lampron]

The report from home is that it is indeed running good today. Can't wait to get home and start making syrup.

Russ

[Russell Lampron]

Boiling sodas and steam at Red Roof Maples last night! Sweetened the pans and made a little syrup last night. Had 365 gallons of sap to boil in. Made about 2.5 gallons of syrup that looks to be medium but will grade it later. There was still some in the filter when I came in last night.

Looking for another run today and will see what the vacuum brings in tomorrow during the rain then boil again Saturday night. Royalmaple called just as I was getting the first draw off. The RO shut off while he was on the phone too which meant that the bulk tank was empty and that I had about 1 hour left before I was out of sap.

Russ

[Russell Lampron]

Boiled again last Saturday night and haven't had enough sap to boil again yet. I am only at 8 gallons so far with orders coming in for a lot more. I hope that the BIGSAP gets here soon. It has been too cold and I would rather have that than too warm.

Had a pretty tough weekend spending most of Saturday shoveling out the tractors trying to gather the sap in my parents woods. Then we had a power outage for most of the day on Sunday that took some work to keep things from freezing up.

The grandchildren and I hung the buckets at my house Sunday but the sap hasn't run enough to gather from them yet. The vacuum has been pulling in a little sap and I should have enough to boil again tomorrow night.

Russ

[TapME]

Russ, It has been a little cold here in the Falls for sap to run. Looking forward to next week and hanging buckets with the sap-hauler. Hope the sap runs hard and fast for all the sugar makers. Lou

[Russell Lampron]

It was another busy weekend at Red Roof Maples. Matt (royalmaple) and Lou (TAPME) came over from Maine and we made the trip to The Governors to tap his trees. We had a good time and got a lot work done. We checked out Daves (3% Solution) sugar house and the EEU, nice for homemade.

Matt, Lou and I stopped in at Parkers on the way home and got to see Mighty Marvin swallow up wood and make steam. It was hard to see Parker on the other side of the evaporator.

Matt and Lou spent the night and we concentrated some sap and made some Quality Product Saturday night. The final tally was 10 gallons and a pint after I finished boiling in what we didn't finish Saturday AM. Matt and Lou were fading fast after midnight.

Got some vacuum leaks and tubing repairs made today and things are looking good for some BIGSAP this week. Got word that Theron was upset that he couldn't make it up here to join in on the work at The Governors and that he missed seeing Mighty Marvin in action.

Russ

[TapME]

I want to say it was a pleasure to meet the owners of red roof maple. It was great to help in the production of some quality product. It sure makes the making of syrup a breeze when you start with 8%, makes one think of doing the same. Best that we can do is pray the trees run really sweet this year. Hope all get some fantastic runs of sap this week.

[Russell Lampron]

I was hoping for a BIGSAP Monday on St Patrick's day but ended up with a BIGSAP Tuesday instead. We collected 210 gallons of sap on Monday and 440 gallons yesterday. Got the evaporator lit at 5:30 and ran out of sap at 12:30 am.

The boiling sodas were going down good as we made about 15 gallons of quality product. This was the biggest run I have had in 2 years. It felt strange boiling past 9:30 but it also felt good to be able to process 650 gallons of sap in that amount of time with a 2x6.

When I get a final tally I should be in the range of 40 gallons for the season and I have only used a little more than 1/2 a cord of wood. I am sure glad that I have an RO machine.

Russ

[TapME]

Great to see that you having some good runs, now Royalmaple needs to get in on it don't you think.

[Russell Lampron]

Lou,

I felt bad calling Matt to tell him about my BIGSAP and finding out that he only got about 100 gallons. But that was only for a minute as I was starting to draw off some quality product. The BIGSAP will come for you and Matt and I will be sitting here drinking a boiling soda with dry taps.

[royalmaple]

Don't feel bad. I'm delighted for anyone with lots of sap to report. I guess I'll just keep thinking my turn for big sap is just around the corner. Until we get to June and I've only made 1/2 pint per tap then I might get a little pissy.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Don't feel bad for Matt, he will be boiling creek water in May when you are riding your Harley.

[Russell Lampron]

I wasn't feeling all that bad. It was more the let down in his voice when I called all excited telling him of my BIGSAP and my surprise when he said that only got about 100 gallons. I boiled in another 430 gallons last night which puts me pretty close to 50 gallons of syrup for the year.

[Parker]

Amazing the diffrance in runs that you are getting to what I am getting 15? miles away,,,just a littel colder here,,has not really started here,,just small teaser runs,,,I would have almost nothing without vacuum,,,

[Hop Kiln Road]

Parker - Just went over 10gal/tap gravity and I can't be more than 20 miles south as the crow flies. Will be over 12 by Sunday PM. It's gotta cut loose for you this weekend. Bruce

[Russell Lampron]

Parker,

The vacuum is what is saving my season. I have gotten 2/3 of my sap from 200 taps on vacuum while the other 1/3 is coming from 200 taps on gravity tubing and 100 buckets. Matt isn't getting much sap over in Buxton, ME either. I hope that we go a couple of weeks into April so that we can all have a good season.

Bruce at Hop Kiln Road in Bow which is about 15 miles south of me is doing really well. It's that 5 degrees in temp difference that is making it happen or not happen.

[royalmaple]

Almost went bankrupt the other day. Ran into wally world and bought all the bed comforters they had in stock. Ran out in the woods and wrapped up all the trees to keep them from freezing too hard.

Super cold yesterday, last night and today wasn't too hot. Hope that wind dies down soon.

Russ why don't you come clean and tell everyone your little trick with feeding the trees with boiling sodas. it is time you let the cat out of the bag so others can do the same and enjoy a good season.

I hope I can go into May this year. I honestly think I can. If there is a chance of sap I am going for it just so I can get bragging rights. Might take an ending in June to get some award.

[Hop Kiln Road]

Russ, you little sneak. How are you doing that? Pouring the boiling sodas around the roots or reversing the vacuum and pumping it right into the tap holes?

[3% Solution]

Hey Russ,
I think things are going to shine starting Tuesday and well toward the weekend.
Temps here are supposed to reach the 40's starting Tuesday.
You will be warmer in Loudon than we are here!!!
Good luck to you!!!
Hang in there Matt!!!!
On our scale of things, if we can make 12 more gallons this week we'll be in good shape.Then a few more the week after and a few more the week after we'll be set!!Happy Easter everyone!!!

Dave

[Mark-NH]

Luckily, we went to vacuum on our lines this year. 2 orchards of about 215 taps each. They have produced more already this year by far than they did all last year on gravity. New stubby spouts made a big difference it the older intall too as that had not run for crap the last 2-3 years. Still over a foot of hard baked snow around the trees. We are so late now and there is no frost in the ground, once it warms up it could be over quickly.

Boiled down about 200 gallons we had on hand tonight so we can take tomorrow off. 35 gallons bottled so far. Happy Easter to all

[Russell Lampron]

I fill the releaser with the "boiling sodas" and hook my air compressor to it. Maybe that is why my syrup taste so good. I am at 50 gallons for the season so far. I made 90 last year so I am over the half way mark.

Yankee Magazine did a taste test of grade B syrup. They got 19 samples from 6 states and New Hampshire took the first five places. The Maple Guys took 5th place. I wasn't able to send a sample because I was sold out at the time.

Matt don't scrub out that Accucup too hard!

[Russell Lampron]

I'm heading over to Dry Tap Maples today to help Matt put up more tubing. The sap didn't run much here over the weekend. It gave me a chance to get some wood for the furnace out. Everything is cleaned and ready for the BIGSAP in the middle of the week. It is 11 degrees here right now so it will be a while before the sap starts to run today.

The crust was hard enough yesterday morning so that I could ride my 4 wheeler all over the place without getting stuck. I rode down through my woods to figure out where the mainlines are going to go so that I can get more taps on vacuum for next season.

[Russell Lampron]

Got home from "The Captains" just in time to help finish collecting sap. Started the RO and lit the evaporator around 7:00 and was done boiling in 250 gallons of sap by 10 pm. Looks to be about 6 gallons in the canner. I am starting to get orders for Grade B. I haven't made any yet and am starting to get a little nervous with Maple Weekend coming up.

[Jim Brown]

Hey Russ I sent you a PM.
We are nearly done maybe one or two good runs then clean up

Jim

[Russell Lampron]

Hi Jim,

I got your pm but haven't had time to check the instructions on the membrane preservative container yet. I will get back to you soon.

[Russell Lampron]

Yesterday I had to drain my evaporator and discard all of it's contents and start over. The night before I forgot to close the valve to the feed tank when I washed the RO and ended up with the RO soap in the evaporator. The blunder wasn't all bad because I made the first Light Amber that I have made in a long time last night.

Had a good run yesterday and I should get another one today. If I get enough to boil it will be the first time this season that I have boiled 3 nights in a row. I think the season is just starting here and I have only burned about a cord of wood to make 60 gallons of quality product so far. I have more than enough wood left to make another 60.

[royalmaple]

Mass quantities of quality product.

You know quality product in NH is still rot gut on our scale.
Hopefully you purged the blunders too when you cleaned the pans and it's all behind you now.

[Russell Lampron]

Rot gut indeed. Just ask the people at Yankee Magazine.

I got a new valve panel made up last night and I will be installing it today. No more RO soap in the evaporator. With all of the valves and pipes that I have in the RO room it is a wonder that I didn't have a problem before now.

Yesterdays run was a disappointment. Only collected 255 gallons and have to save that for the weekend. I was hoping to boil again last night to try to make more Light Amber. I like being at that end of the color spectrum.

I was hoping to make some Grade B for the upcoming open house. I have some Dark Amber that I think is borderline enough to call Grade B though and will can that up. Believe it or not I am getting request for it.

[TapME]

Russ, I hope you have a great weekend and sell all of that quality product. Maybe next year you can make a product that you can sell in Maine as syrup. LOL Lou.

[NH Maplemaker]

Russ, same here! We can make enough dark amber or B grade ! That is the fastest growing market here!! People buy light and Medium, But a lot more are going for the dark!!

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Can't blame them, it just tastes better.

[royalmaple]

I had people freaking out cause I had ex. dark amber. Couldn't believe it. Sold out and I have orders for more as soon as I make some. It would be nice if you guys could get that grade B name lifted and get and ex. dark A grade.

That's what I made last night, older sap but awesome flavor.

Keep up the good work.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Grade B, what's that?? I am with you, I label it as extra dark. I just don't like the sound of Grade B. Makes it sound inferior especially sitting beside a bunch of Grade A. In WV, we have no grading guidelines. Funny thing, a lot of the Dark A I made had a light or Medium Flavor, so I guess I could have labeled it that way if I was grading based on flavor.

I didn't make any Grade B/Extra Dark this year. Gonna miss it on the food, but that's how it goes.

[Russell Lampron]

Rechecked the color on the Dark Amber that I have in bulk and just couldn't justify labeling it Grade B. I agree with Brandon that it sounds inferior to Grade A. I also agree with Matt that it would be nice if we had a Grade A Extra Dark. I hope I don't end the season without making any Grade B or good flavored Commercial. At least if I do make the good tasting Commercial I can label it Grade B and sell it in New Hampshire. That is if I don't can it up as private stock and keep it for myself. My whole family loves it.

[Russell Lampron]

Another Maple Weekend has come and gone. Because of the wind and cold the turn out was low on Saturday but I more than made up for it on Sunday. A lot of people with a lot of nice comments on how clean my sugar house is and I even overheard one customer comment on how my syrup tasted better than the syrup at the last place. She bought a gallon on her way out.

I didn't have any sap to boil Sunday so I filled the feed tank with water and boiled that. There was enough sweet in the pans to make 3 gallons of syrup and make the sugar house smell good for the visitors.

The sap started running yesterday and should run good today. I am at 70 gallons of quality product for the season and should be able to reach my goal of 100 gallons. I still have almost half of the 2 cords of sugar wood left. Enough to make another 50 or 60 gallons of quality product if I get the raw material.

[white mt]

Hi Russ sounds like things are going good for you .I think 50 miles or so south dose make a big dif -from one sugar hose to another for this years syrup totel. I have noticed a few deg - can make a big difrence. Thanks dan

[Russell Lampron]

Dan the producers south of Concord have done real well so far this season. I have only boiled 2 nights in a row once this season not counting Maple Weekend. Usually I will boil 3 or 4 nights in a row between sap runs. Sap totals per run are less than in past years too. The sugar content is up though and I am making more syrup with less sap.

I hope to get 2 more weeks out of the season to pass last years total and I hope that you guys up north get some decent runs to make up for what has been a slow season so far.

[3% Solution]

Hi Russ,
How have you been?
In the cold regions of Sullivan County we still have a good snow pack in the woods.
Sap is clear like water and it's sweet!
This should help out for a few more weeks!
So you folks up North still have a while to go, you'll be ok, you'll be making syrup when I'm cleaning up!!!
Hang in there!!

Dave

[Russell Lampron]

Dave,

I am still saying that the season is just starting like I have been for the last 4 weeks. This time I think it is true. It is drizzling and only 33 degrees here right now and all of the trees are running. It is looking like I will be boiling tomorrow night for sure and hope to for the next 2 weeks.

[royalmaple]

Russ-

Might have to make a soda run if you got two full weeks of boiling.

I got a 1/2 gallon of captain ready. Bring on the sap.

[Russell Lampron]

Matt glad to see that you didn't drown when you fixed your tank.

I will be picking up more boiling sodas today for the boil tonight. You and the Captain keep a good eye on RamOna and Willy. It's happy time in maple land.

[royalmaple]

There's kind of a slight problem when your 5'8" and the tank opening is 6'. And there wasn't a set of stairs inside to make anything easier. Glad I am at the fighting weight I am at cause I can think of a few sugarmakers that would never have fit down the hole, or been able to pull themselves out.


I didn't have any boots so I just rolled up my pants. Holy moly is that sap cold. I should have pumped out the tank more I guess.

KIdding!!

[802maple]

Are you taling about me old royal?

[802maple]

Actually us larger sugarmakers can surprise you at times. I was inside one of those tanks one time when a neighbor stopped and asked how I got in there and I told him I went thru the hole. He said "I imagine, there is no way you would fit thru that hole" I said you are right, you got me, I confess, I actually went to the factory and had them mold it around me. "Here's your sign"

[TapME]

He Matt, I resemble those remarks. Some days I can't get out of my own way, so please don't put me in a tank without my swimmies.

[royalmaple]

Ha ha,

I would like to see that.

No one in particular is being targeted in my attack.

Russ must be swimming, he told me earlier they were dumping buckets at noon to get every last drop before it spilled over.

[TapME]

yah me too. LOL

[802maple]

You can tell the truth, I can here it now, I make that Jerry think about his gut.

[TapME]

Hey Russell are you still out there, or are you buried with sap?

[PATheron]

Parker- We need a full BIGSAP UPDATE NOW! Thee(bigsapzar)rooonn

[Russell Lampron]

I have been busy collecting the raw material and making quality product. I am getting close to last years total and should hit the 100 gallon mark before I am all done. My regular job is cutting into my sugaring time so I haven't had much time to sit at the computer.

Collected 140 gallons of sap from my parents house yesterday and 40 of that was from just one tree. That would be the "super tree" in the woods that I think I showed to Matt and Theron when they were here. My helper checked it at 10:00 yesterday and all of the 5 buckets were close to running over. He distributed the sap to buckets on other trees and they were full again at 2:30 when they collected over there.

Got some crappy weather coming today but the temps should be right for some sap flow.

[Breezy Lane Sugarworks]

clone that tree!!

[Parker]

I am hopeing you are a week or 2 ahead of me in weather (I think you are) I have not had any big runs yet,,been around 1/2 gal. per tap,,,,,but I think it will come,,,how is you grade holding?

[Maple Hill Sugarhouse]

Mother of all Snappin' Turtles. Got to be at least a 5' Dia. tree?=would be nice to have a woods full of ones that pump out sap like that. Question is though how is the sugar% on it?

[Russell Lampron]

Other than the B I made on the Sunday of Maple Weekend all of my syrup has been grade A. I made some medium last night.

It would be sweet to have a forest full of trees like that one. I have never checked the sugar content but will try to bring my refractometer with me when I go over to gather again. The trunk is huge, it is like two trees grown together at the butt, and has about 6 shoots that are close to the size of 2 bucket trees that come up out of that. All of them have nice big crowns too.

[Maple Hill Sugarhouse]

With all those points coming off it's got to be like a "Kings Crown" on his head=so i'd say that is the Daddy of all Snappin' Turtles/Wouldn't you say?

[TapME]

That's a nice tree that can put out (sap) like that. Wish I had a bakers dozen like that one. I would like to know the % of sugar as the Gov said.

[Maple Hill Sugarhouse]

post edited

[Russell Lampron]

I checked the sugar content on the "super tree" when I gathered today. It tested at 3%. Not only does it give alot of sap it is sweet too.

Only had 190 gallons of sap to boil in tonight and with the help of the electric evaporator it took less than 2 hours from start to finish. The wood fired evaporator was boiling good tonight.

[3% Solution]

Good morning Russ,
Got to love those big trees and the sweet sap.
I have one that was bleeding 4.5% and it looked healthy.
Are you most done in Loudon?
Things aren't looking good for us, snow is really backing away from the trees now.
Warm weather coming this week!!!

Dave

[TapME]

Russell; I'll take a dozen of those trees please.

[Russell Lampron]

The weather forecast doesn't look to promising but I think I should get one more run Tuesday. After that it will be wait and see. I hope to get enough to reach 100 gallons for the season.

[Russell Lampron]

Dismal results given the temps today. Only collected 130 gallons of sap and made the first grade B of the season. Looks like it is going to freeze again tonight and we may have a small run tomorrow. The winds are coming in from the wrong direction now.

I hate to see the season end. The runs were so sporadic that it seemed like the season never really got going. I made just about all grade A syrup which is a change from last year and will pass last years total of 90 gallons. I did it with fewer taps this season too. Good luck to all of you up north. I am hoping that the weather liars are wrong and that the trees will start running again.

[3% Solution]

Hi Russ,
Sap was running good here this morning.
We have broke last years record of 34.5 gallons, we have 35.5 gallons on the chart now!!
We have made some nice syrup this year.
Yup the weather doesn't look good after tomorrow for us, it's going to get warm during the day and freeze real tight at night!
We'll keep plugging for a while longer !!

Dave

[TapME]

Russell, how are you doing with sap and syrup? How did you like the temps today?

[Russell Lampron]

It is looking like the season is over here. It was better than last year but not by much. 15 or 20 miles to the south the temps were better for sap flow than they were here. I made more quality product this year than ever before but could have done alot better if the overnight lows and daytime highs were about 5 degrees warmer in the month of March.

Other than having to do most of the repair work and tapping on snow shoes and having to dig out the tractors and 4 wheelers when we got them stuck in the deep snow I had no major problems or breakdowns this year. My mother and my wife both went down with knee injuries because of the deep snow but they are doing fine now.

Big plans for next year include adding 300 or so taps to my vacuum and sadly leaving my parents woods. They are getting too old to help gather and my daytime job doesn't allow me enough time to do it myself. I also have the wifes OK to add on to my sugar house like I have planned to for the past 4 years or so. All it took was teaching her how to can syrup. She saw first hand how hard it is to do in the cramped space that I do it in now. Now I have just got to sell some syrup to get the money.

[powerdub]

This is a sad day for sure! After a couple of boilling sodas of my own, I feel your pain. Hope to see you soon.

[Maple Hill Sugarhouse]

Secure that permission in writing=They can change their mind over night and then you'll know who the boss is...

[Russell Lampron]

Scott,

How did your season go this year? Things will actually be easier for me when I have all of the taps in my own woods. In the woods that I am leaving I have about 200 taps on gravity tubing and in previous years we put out 100 buckets. Only 60 this year because of the deep snow. The taps that I add this year will all be on vacuum which is where I have been getting most of my sap anyway.

Governor,

Shes already figuring out ways to get the money and pushing the syrup sales to get the maple money envelope filled.

When I boil out what is in the evaporator and can up the sweet for Bruce I should be just over 100 gallons for the season.

[TapME]

Sounds like you will need some help in the renovations of the sugar house? May just have to show up and hand you some boiling sodas. LOL
Good job on the season Russell

[Sugarmaker]

Russ,
Good luck with the addition! 100 gallons sounds like a good season for you.
Nice pictures of your sugarhouse.

Regards,
Chris

[powerdub]

Russ, Not done yet, so far at 285 or so. I know I got one more day to go because I am sitting on 500 gallons of sap. If it does not run tomorrow, I will boil it in and call it a season but I am hoping it run through the middle of the week and after that I can pull my taps and call it the best year ever.

[Russell Lampron]

Scott I hope you get the runs that you are hoping for. I am hoping for a little more too. I am pulling the taps Saturday. Then it will be time to clean up and start on next years expansion. Right now I am at 104 gallons and if I don't get any more runs it will be a record year for me. I am hoping that I can double that amount with the new taps on vacuum next year.

I don't know what syrup prices will be like next year. I hear that Quebec is having a bad season.

[Russell Lampron]

Thank you for the compliments Chris. I am at 104 gallons and still have the taps in. It is a new record for me and I did it with 40 fewer buckets and dumped the contents of my evaporator in mid season because of a little accident with my RO soap. I am figuring that that one cost me about 5 or 6 gallons of finished product. My previous best was 90 gallons last year. It wasn't a bad year compared to others but with 500 taps I could have doubled that if it had been just 5 degrees warmer when the trees wanted to run the most.

[Maple Hill Sugarhouse]

Russ-Get the expansion put in and kick some kahootie next year on the record book. Go get em'.

[Russell Lampron]

Got all of the tubing in my parents woods down and removed. The woods just don't look as good without the tubing. I also made a tubing washer so that I could use compressed air and water to clean my tubing. It worked slick and cost less than $40 including a pressure gauge.

It was a good weekend for a change and I got alot done. All of the taps are pulled and the tubing is washed. Next is the evaporator and tanks. The evaporator is drained but still needs to be cleaned and the tanks are all at home now just waiting to be washed.

The first stage of the expansion is going to be to run some new mainlines and tubing in my woods to replace the taps that I don't have in my parents woods anymore. After that if there is any money left I start on the sugar house.

I made 14 more gallons of syrup than I did last year and with 32 fewer buckets out but somehow it seems like it wasn't a good season. Next year I am going to give it hell and get the kind of production that I should out of the number of taps that I have.

[Sugarmaker]

Russ will be watching for your improved production rates next year. I would like to improve our boiling rate as I have done all I can with the rented road side trees as far as quantity of sap. I could tap more trees but only if the gathering and boiling time are reduced.
You mentioned the colder temps. yes they did not feel right and we got less sap but we gathered more quality sap and made more syrup than ever just like you. The cold temps are a good thing, we just dont have it happen like this season often.

Regards,
Chris

[Maple Hill Sugarhouse]

Wow- 14 Gals. extra of quality product made and then you subtract in the cost of the extra boiling soda's it took and your looking at an extra profit margin that could purchase about 100' of mainline and 275' of lateral line and maybe 12 taps and T's. I don't know if you'll be able to afford the expansion and make it happen this time around?

Boy it's a ruff world out there. Might have to sell the back tire off the FLHTECU ??? I don't even have the profit this year to afford new tires(back and front are right down to the wear marks and slightly lower) for my VRSCA=Last i knew the back was about $185 and the front was about $145. Back tire only last about 8,000 miles and i don't spin it either/but i'm hard on the gas for the excelleration from 55 MPH- triple digits about every day/sometimes.

Darn 883 rear tire was like $100 W/shipping and that last to 15,000 Mi when i replaced it.

[Amber Gold]

Do you think your gallons of syrup produce per tap ration isn't as high as others is because you tap both red and sugar maples? What's your ratio of reds to sugars?

[Russell Lampron]

Kevin,

I didn't have the breakdowns that I had last year and I am selling the stuff that I don't need anymore that I took out of my parents woods. That will help buy more mainline and taps. I still have alot of syrup to sell and have about $1000 for the expansion in the kitty so far.

I put a new rear tire on the FLHTCUI last August. I only got about 8000 miles out of it. It cost me somewhere around $250 I think. I know it hurt at the time. If I put 7400 miles on it again this year like I did last year I will need to replace both tires before the season is over.

Josh,

The big problem this year was that the temps always seemed to be about 5 degrees too cold when it was still cold out and that same 5 degrees too warm when it warmed up. Most seasons will have a week or so when the temps are right and that is when I make most of my syrup. This year it never happened. This season I had about 125 reds tapped and the rest were sugars. Next season only about 100 or so will be sugars, about 60 of those will be buckets and the rest will be reds on vacuum. I am shooting for 500 total for next season with everything on vacuum.

[Russell Lampron]

I decided to take a little time on this rainy day to post some pictures of my doodlebug tractor. I can't figure out why it isn't working right but click on Back to russhd1997 on the left in the album box and then click on Doodlebug to view them.

For those that know about them the first thing that you will notice is that it has a car front end in it. I put that in after 2 steering box failures and because it is easier to find F150 wheels than it is Model AA wheels. Wheels that fit are the hardest thing to find. I made the rear wheels by knocking the centers out of the original wheels and welding them into a pair of Dayton wheels.

The motor is original, the manufacture date is August of 1930. The rear end came out of something a little newer but is still old enough to not have hydraulic brakes. It has a single 4 speed transmission in it but I plan to add a second one when time permits. I have 3 spare ones in storage and I may put the 4 speed Rux Tell worm drive rear end that I have into it as well.

I will get some action photos when I am using it to move some wood around and post them at a later date. It will drag a pretty good size log out of the woods and haul a 1/2 cord of wood on a trailer with ease.

[royalmaple]

Russ-

edit the link in your signature: you should have it like this:

http://s250.photobucket.com/albums/gg247/russhd1997/

Then people will go direct to the main photobucket page for your account.

What does the doorbell switch operate?

[Russell Lampron]

Thank you Matt that works. Now I will have to take and post some sugaring pictures to post on the blank page.

The door bell button is for the ahh oogaah horn that no longer works. There is a switch for the high and low beam headlights that works if you play with it. Further over is another door bell button for a bell that is under the hood that also no longer works. I have another bell that I need to test and install if it works.

The ahh oogaah horn was a cheap reproduction that was no great loss. Some day I would like to find an original but the ones that I have found so far are way to expensive to put on a homemade tractor.

[royalmaple]

next time I come over I want a ride in that buggy. And we can have some trail sodas with us.

[Russell Lampron]

Not a problem Matt. We'll use it to haul all of the mainline down over the hill.